Sales Psychology Articles

Michael O'Grady is committed to keeping this site filled with new, original and valuable sales training articles on topics like: sales psychology, customer communication, buying behavior, self-improvement, personality, goal setting, time management, relationship building, lead generation, productivity and much more.

Please Note: This site has been re-designed. All previous content and articles are being added back into this area in the near future. If you have an article request, please contact us.

Featured Article: How to Break Sales Resistance

Do you know what sales resistance is and how to break it? You may have learned about objections in your sales training and how to overcome them. But resistance and objections are not one in the same and are managed differently. Objections typically come at the end of your sales visit and are presented as common rejections to your presented offer.

What about the wall of resistance that’s presented at the beginning of your sales visit? It can be defined, in sales, as a fear of being sold something you don’t need. A barrier is built by your customer the moment you say hello. Some customers are already thinking, "What is he going to try to sell me? I really don`t want to be bothered", before you even walk through the door.

Read the rest of "How to Break Sales Resistance" here

New Perspective for Tired Sales People: A Lesson in Sales Motivation

Let's face it, sales motivation isn't always 100%. But helping someone has always been a motivator for me. The thought that I’m having a positive effect on someone motivates me to work through obstacles, boundaries and seemingly impossible things. In fact, it’s motivated me to get out of bed when some mornings I’d rather not.

You know what I’m talking about. You wake up not feeling great. Physically, you’re tired. Mentally, you’re a little dull. You might have a cold. Or maybe you’re facing the start of a pretty stressful day ahead.

Read the rest of "New Perspective for Tired Sales People: A Lesson in Sales Motivation" here

Post Closing Techniques for Service Technicians to Prevent Buyers Remorse

Buyers remorse is a good business owners worst nightmare. Unsatisfied customers are frustrating for all contractors and can be damaging to a company's reputation. Post closing techniques are the key to preventing buyers remorse and making sure your company has satisfied customers (and referral sources).

Service technicians have the opportunity to ensure buyers remorse doesn't happen, even after written authorization is received from the customer to do the work.

Here's a good example of this: Recently, a service technician at work was called to a home. The wife was home but the husband was not. Their furnace hadn't been maintained since it was installed 5 years earlier. After some careful and thorough diagnostics, the technician got written authorization from the wife to fix the problem and got the heat up and running. The next day, the husband called the company to complain. "My wife got taken advantage of. All your guy had to do was change a dirty filter and I got ripped off!” Read the rest of "Post Closing Techniques for Service Technicians to Prevent Buyers Remorse" here

Leadership in 2012 and Mrs. Silva's Story

“I’m not buying anything. I don’t have the money so don’t even bother coming inside”. This was the warm greeting I received the other day as I entered Mrs. Silva's home during a service call. I decided to arrive at the call with my technician, Tim. In Mrs. Silva's customer history, I saw that she recently spent $600 fixing her 60 year-old (Thatcher) furnace. The service technician at that previous time attempted to educate Mrs. Silva about the benefits of a new, safe, energy-efficient furnace. “Don’t even think about it. Just fix the %$#@ ! thing“, was her response.

The reason I’m telling you Mrs. Silva's story has to do leadership. Years ago, leadership was represented by well known people like Vince Lombardi coaching his team toward victory or John F. Kennedy giving an inspiring speech from his podium. While I admire then powerful leaders, I also know that there are real life leaders walking among us in every day life. If you look hard enough, you'll spot them in places of hardship, difficulty and struggle. People today who are fighting to get by in life look to those every day leaders to safeguard them, take charge, guide them and help them make good decisions. I think Mrs. Silva needed a leader, and so did Tim.

Read the rest of "Leadership in 2012 and Mrs. Silva's Story" here

What's Your Purpose in 2012?

Have you ever gotten to the top rung on the ladder of success and realized you had it leaning against the wrong wall? Stephen Covey asks this of his readers in his book, "Seven Habits of Highly Effective People".

As the new year approaches, goal setting naturally becomes a trending topic. I've heard many speakers and read many books and articles on the subject. "Don't get caught in New Years resolution mode", "If your goals aren't written, they aren't real", "State your goals in the positive and have an action plan". These are the headlines and sound bytes of the New Year season. They make plenty of sense. But as Covey suggests, what if you're just not sure what you want in the New Year? What if your purpose is all wrong. Maybe your ladder really is leaning against the wrong wall!

Read the rest of "What's Your Purpose in 2012?" here

Helping Hurricane Irene Customers: A Lesson for Contractors

"I don't know if my insurance will cover this!", said one worried customer after another during my estimates in their damaged homes following the aftermath of Hurricane Irene. Homeowners are being told to get mutliple estimates. Many of them never needed flood insurance but are now dealing with damage from more than 6 feet of water in their basement. Those who had some flood insurance have found out they had the wrong kind. As a result, the contents of their home are not covered in their insurance plans.

Although several months have passed since Hurricane Irene, homeowners are still feeling the pain of loss from it's damage. Many are feeling defeated by the lack of insurance coverage in a time of recession. Many are still without heat as they prepare for the winter months ahead. It is my hope that contractors take this opportunity to be a help to their Hurricane Irene customers in ways they most need.

Read the rest of "Helping Hurricane Irene Customers: A Lesson for Contractors" here.

Setting Sales Goals for Sales Success

Throughout my years of setting sales goals and training others to do the same, one of the things I’ve learned from highly successful business people is the value of having up-to-date and accurate numbers on a daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual basis.  What kind of numbers am I speaking of?  Let’s start with some of the basics in business.

1. Pricing: Is your equipment, material and/or product pricing up to date?  In order to provide an accurate estimate and contract, you have to have accurate pricing to start.
2. Hours: Is every sales person properly trained on accurate use of hours and time?  Does every sales person understand and know what the company’s gross margins and net profitability numbers need to be?
3. Sales Board Numbers: Sales volume, number of sales leads, type of lead (referrals, repeat customers, etc.), number of sales visits/calls, number of jobs quoted – when your sales team’s numbers are current, accurate and displayed on a sales goal board, you can successfully manage their progress toward their goal.

Read the rest of "Setting Sales Goals for Sales Success" here

Basic Sales Training Lessons, Sales Psychology 101

Lesson #1: Create Professional Friendships. A relationship is simply a type of connection. It is through a connection where bonds can be created and trust and mutual respect between people can be established.

From a sales training perspective, for a bond and level of trust to develop, the customer needs to like you and you need to like the customer. People will buy from other people they like and trust. You don't need to become buddies and invite each other for dinner. But a special "sales-person-to-customer" friendship is needed. How you create this professional friendship has a lot to do with your personality and the ability to get along with a wide variety of people and different personalities.

Read the rest of "Basic Sales Training Lessons" here.

Goal Setting is a Fundamental in Business and in Life

Everything good starts with a goal, a dream or even just a simple idea.

I’ve been fortunate enough to have some great mentors over the years that impressed upon me the relationship between goal setting and success in life. I was told how important it was to write my sales goals down on a sales board, and that there was nothing worse in my career than defunct goals. I adopted the art of goal setting early on and it has had a tremendous impact on my sales career.

Goal setting isn’t just about setting departmental goals for your sales figures, it’s also about talking to your sales people about their own personal goals, their mission in life and their purpose. What is it that they want from their career? What are their passions outside of work? What is it going to take to get what they want?

Read the rest of Goal Setting is a Fundamental in Business and in Life and download a free goal setting plan here.

Loss Leader Marketing and Advertising: Business Owners Should Keep an Open Mind, by Michael O'Grady

The concept of a loss leader is a fairly simple one. You advertise and sell a product at a loss in the calculated hope that a customer will purchase other items in addition to that one item for an eventual profit.

For Example: the local grocery store purchases Cheerios cereal for $2.00 a box. The normal sale price is $4.00. The grocery store then advertises and sells the Cheerios as a special for $1.75 a box (a .25 cent per box loss). The grocery store has calculated that the average person that enters the grocery store will spend $30.00 at an $8.00 per person profit. The end result of the loss leader $1.75 box of Cheerios is more traffic through the store and a profit.

I recently spoke to an ex-employee of a large home improvement chain. This store would advertise a product (Thompsons Water Seal for example) at a loss, then position a customer service representative in the aisle. When customers would go to purchase the can of Thompsons Water Seal, the store representative would re-direct them to the store brand of water seal, which was priced lower than the popular Thompsons brand. The store brand actually cost the store less to purchase and had a greater profit margin.

This approach involves strategy. I feel it walks a very fine business ethics line. However, it is still a very well thought out strategy. There can always be a calculated risk when it comes to advertising and marketing. In the long run, if you track the numbers from a strategy standpoint, they will tell you which promotions work effectively and which ones may need some tweaking. For some reason, I find that these very sound practices don't occur often enough in the in-home contracting industry. Read the rest of Loss Leader Marketing: Business Owners Should Keep an Open Mind.

How to Sell to Customers who Bargain: A Lesson in Cross-Cultural Selling, by Michael O'Grady

Local Resident Gets Thrown Out of the Acme Food Market for Bargaining

Yesterday, a New Jersey man was asked to leave the Acme food market for bargaining. Mr. O’Grady emptied his shopping cart full of groceries onto the checkout counter. When the cashier gave Mr. O’Grady the total dollar amount for his groceries, he attempted to barter with the cashier for a different total. “I know the total is $180 dollars but I’ll give you $100 for everything,” O’Grady said. The incident escalated to the point where the store manager asked Mr. O’Grady to leave or he would call the police.

Okay, I really didn’t do that. But could you imagine if I did? You might assume I was losing my marbles.

There are natural systems in our American society that we just follow. We stop at red lights, go at green lights and we certainly don’t negotiate prices at the local food store. How about this, though - what if you were born and raised in India, or China, or another country where bargaining was an everyday tool for feeding your family?

I’ve had the benefit of meeting many people from other cultures. In the Indian and Hindu cultures as an example, it is completely normal to have to barter for food and household supplies. How well you negotiate at the market may determine if your family eats that day. If you are raised this way, it must be difficult to completely adapt to our American buying and selling processes.

It's common to not understand cultural differences in buying situations. You may have had challenging times dealing with cultures that naturally negotiate. But how you react to these differences is crucial in business.

According to Cindy King, an International Business and Cross-Cultural Communications Specialist, there is one common reaction that is a sales killer: making assumptions. Making too many assumptions based on your own cultural background can lead to multiple communication barriers and lost sales.

Find out what's in your way. Read the rest of How to Sell to Customers Who Bargain: A Lesson in Cross-Cultural Selling.

Bully Customers, Never Let Them See You Sweat, by Michael O'Grady

Last Saturday, I was enjoying a relaxing afternoon after a busy work morning. My brother in-law, Richard, was visiting. Richard is 18 years-old and about to enter his first semester of college. He's an impressive young man who really seems to have his head on straight. I've got great respect for him. He's got a maturity that most 18 year-olds lack.

Richard and I were talking about school bullies. My 10 year-old son Michael has had a few run-ins with aggressive kids. My wife and I have coached him on how to handle these kids. Michael really looks up to his “Uncle Richard” and pays attention when he speaks. “You can’t let the bully see that what he says bothers you,” Richard explained to Michael. “You have to play it cool. If the bully sees that you’re upset or bothered - they’ll be all over you.”

Richard's advice really hit home with Michael, who has gained a new level of confidence. I know he'll be alright because he's got some tools to use.

What about bully customers? You know those types, don't you?

• They research things to the max and don't give you much time to discuss the options you have for their needs.
• They have preconceived notions about what you're going to sell to them and they let you know right away...they don't trust you.
• They treat you like a number, talk over you and rush through a sales call.

Read the rest of Bully Customers, Never Let Them See You Sweat.

Do You Have the Guts to Close the Sale? written by Michael O'Grady

The word guts, when it comes to closing a sale, has much to do with having “intestinal fortitude.” In other words, being fearless. You not only can’t be afraid to ask for the order, you almost need to have a swagger about it. You should have such a level of confidence that you can ask for the order anywhere, any time and to anybody. I’m not talking about being cocky or arrogant about it. The swagger comes from having conviction for the reason behind asking for the order.

I know what you’re probably thinking (or mumbling under your breath), “Come on Mike, how much conviction can I have selling a furnace?” The product or service that you’re selling may not get you juiced. But the bigger purpose behind your work should be tied to your personal or professional goals.

I was reminded of this the other day. I just released a contractor training video and asked my 22 year-old sister-in-law to take a look. I can’t remember the exact words she used but in a nut shell, she said it was boring. Read on

Selling to the 4 Personality Types: A Lesson in Sales Psychology, written by Michael O'Grady

I once read a great book by Florence Littauer, titled "Your Personality Tree" which taught me a great deal about how to approach many different types of customers. In this book, I learned about the ancient Greek theory of medicine, called "Humorism" and the four humors, also known as "temperamentum" or temperament, which represent a way of thinking, behaving and reacting.

Hippocrates (b. ca. 460 B.C), "the Father of Medicine", and his son-in-law Polybus, believed that the four bodily fluids (a.k.a "humors") are each associated with one of the four elements (air, fire, earth, water) which make up all things. Too much of one humor or another was believed to bring about illness.

The Humorism theory suggests that each person is born of a basic temperament, as determined by which of the four humors is more evident within them. Knowing which type is dominant in a person can help you, as a professional sales person or business owner, adjust your presentations and approaches with people more effectively. Read on